TURLOCK, Calif. — The on-campus return for Stanislaus State University will have to wait at least a few more weeks.
The university, which has campuses in San Joaquin and Stanislaus counties, is delaying the return of in-person instruction and campus repopulation to Oct. 1.
Despite the in-person delay, all instruction will start on Aug. 23. For classes that were planning in-person or hybrid instruction, that means they'll be starting the semester virtually and making the transition to in-person on-campus instruction on Oct. 1.
According to a letter from university president Ellen Junn, the reason for the delay is due to "notable increases in COVID-19 cases locally due to the Delta variant of COVID-19," and a need to reduce potential exposures on campus.
According to the university, the campus has seen several positive cases of COVID-19, which were separate incidents not linked to transmissions at one campus source.
In the letter, Junn said the decision was made in consultation with public health departments in Stanislaus and San Joaquin counties and the chancellor's office.
"Given these incidents, and our desire to have our testing program in place, our campus leadership has determined these actions to be in the best interest of the health and safety of the campus community," Junn said in the letter.
Despite the delays, students who were scheduled to move into campus housing in the coming week are able to move-in as scheduled, Junn said in the letter. However, those students will need to show evidence of vaccination, exemption, and if exempted, ongoing testing status.
WATCH ALSO:
